2000
#17,377
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,498
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.56
Rare Last name
Perlmutter
A surname of German origin meaning "mother-of-pearl worker" or "pearl dealer".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,859 Americans carry the last name Perlmutter. That puts it at #17,107 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 184,376 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Perlmutter surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
1.9K
1 in 184,376
Census rank
#17,107
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,621 bearers of the surname Perlmutter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 17107th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Perlmutter, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Perlmutter
The surname PERLMUTTER is of German origin, arising in the Middle Ages. It is a combination of two German words: "Perl" meaning "pearl" and "Mutter" meaning "mother." The name likely referred to an occupation or trade involving pearls, such as a pearl maker, seller, or polisher.
The first recorded instances of the name appear in German church records from the 16th century, with variations in spelling such as "Perlmuter" and "Perlmuther." This indicates the name was already well-established by that time. It was particularly prevalent in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where pearl fishing and trading were common industries.
In the 17th century, the name appears in official documents from the city of Nuremberg, where a family of PERLMUTTERS were prominent merchants and artisans involved in the pearl trade. One notable member was Hans PERLMUTTER (1624-1698), a master jeweler and gemstone cutter.
As the name spread across Europe, it took on various local spellings and pronunciations. In France, it became "Perlmutré," while in Poland it was rendered as "Perlmutr." The Dutch variation was "Perlmoeder," reflecting the language's influence on the name's evolution.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in England is found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Islington, London, where a child named Sarah PERLMUTTER was baptized in 1712. This suggests that the name had already been carried to England by German immigrants by the early 18th century.
Another prominent figure bearing this surname was Friedrich PERLMUTTER (1783-1856), a German philosopher and academic who taught at the University of Berlin. His works on ethics and moral philosophy were widely studied in his time.
In the 19th century, the name gained further recognition through the achievements of composer and violinist Johann PERLMUTTER (1822-1894), who was a respected figure in the musical circles of Vienna.
As the centuries progressed, the name PERLMUTTER continued to spread across Europe and eventually to other parts of the world, carried by waves of immigration. However, its origins can be firmly traced back to the German-speaking regions of Central Europe and the pearl-related trades that gave rise to this distinctive surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Perlmutter
Among Census respondents with the surname Perlmutter, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Perlmutter bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Perlmutter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 1,502
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 47
- Two or more races2.7% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 19
- Black or African American0.4% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Perlmutter
Perlmutter appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#17,502
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,610
+112 bearers (+7.5%)
Per 100,000 0.55
Rank movement Down 125 places
2020
#17,107
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,621
+11 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 0.54
Rank movement Up 395 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #17,377 | 1,498 | 0.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #17,502 | 1,610 | 0.55 | +112 bearers (+7.5%) | Down 125 places |
| 2020 | #17,107 | 1,621 | 0.54 | +11 bearers (+0.7%) | Up 395 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Perlmutter surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #17,502 | #17,107 | 2.3% |
| Count | 1,610 | 1,621 | 0.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.55 | 0.54 | -1.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Perlmutter bearers went from 1,610 to 1,621 (+0.7% change). The surname moved up 395 positions in the national ranking, going from #17,502 to #17,107.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Perlmutter
FAQ
Perlmutter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Perlmutter?
Name Census estimates that about 1,859 living Americans carry the surname Perlmutter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 184,376 residents.
How common is Perlmutter?
Perlmutter ranks #17,107 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,621 people with the surname Perlmutter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,859), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Perlmutter.
Has Perlmutter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Perlmutter went from 1,610 recorded bearers to 1,621. That is an increase of 11 (+0.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #17,502 to #17,107.
What does the Census say about the background of Perlmutter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Perlmutter, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Perlmutter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (1,502 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Perlmutter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Perlmutter (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Perlmutter mean?
A surname of German origin meaning "mother-of-pearl worker" or "pearl dealer". The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Perlmutter (0.54 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Perlmutter?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.